Basketball Games/Player Interviews

The probable cause affidavit which was filed in support of the arrest warrant which was issued for David Camm made mention of the basketball players with whom Dave had been playing. According to paragraph g. of that affidavit, "Witnesses playing basketball with David R. Camm said that he left the game on or around 9:00 p.m. and David R. Camm told them he was headed to his house…"

That paragraph of the affidavit, as with others, was incorrect at best and misleading at worst. There was no corroboration to the assertion that Dave left around 9:00PM in the form of cellular telephone records, alarm settings, or other evidence. Indeed, the assertion that witnesses (plural) said that Dave left around 9:00PM was never supported by the identification of at least those two witnesses, whoever they were supposed to be.

The background of the basketball games and the players should be understood in order to assess whether or not, in the words of former prosecutor Stanley Faith, that the players were either lying or mistaken.

The Georgetown Community Church finished building the Family Life Center which housed the full court gymnasium in late 1999. It was built in order to accommodate the growing size of the congregation and to provide an outreach to younger people in the form of athletic activities, principally basketball. Since the building of the gym, literally hundreds of young boys and girls have availed themselves of the generosity of the church in providing an initial introduction to organized basketball.

The male adult membership of the church had several individuals who had previously played basketball in high school or college as well as avid players who just loved the game. Playing pickup games on Thursday evenings in the fall and winter was a natural evolution for the players, all of whom considered themselves good ball players.

Jeff Lockhart, the son of the pastor, Leland Lockhart, was an outstanding player and was also a business partner with Sam Lockhart, his uncle and a former player himself. Jeff possessed the key to the Life Center and also the code to the alarm system. It was also Jeff who was the point man in the loosely organized games, making phone calls to encourage others to attend.

The games had begun just a few weeks prior to September 28th and it was anyone's guess as to how many players would show up on a given evening. Although the guys ranged in age from the early 20's to the late 30's (the exception being Sam who was 56) they nonetheless were competitive and liked playing five on five full court ball.

On Thursday evening, September 21st, only nine players showed up, meaning that there were no five on five games. They instead played four on four with one player either sitting along the sideline or else staying loose by dribbling or shooting short baskets at an unused basket.

In order to get at least ten players at the gym on September 28th, several telephone calls were made by Jeff and others in order to encourage at least ten players to show up that evening. When Jeff, Dave and the others arrived at the gym (alarm records reflect the alarm was disengaged at 6:59PM) just prior to 7:00PM, no one knew how many players would be present.

Through their own testimony, the following individuals didn't even know, until just before they left for the gym, if they would even show up or not:

1. Scott Schrank stated that he wasn't sure if he would play that night and only belatedly showed up, being one of the last to arrive.
2. Eric Minzenberger only made the decision to play at the last minute and he, too, was one of the last to arrive.
3. Philip Lockhart decided to drive home from Purdue University that Thursday instead the following day and no one knew he was coming to the game.
4. Jeff Dickey was invited at the last minute by his brother, Martin, who had played before; it was Jeff's first and only night of playing and he had never met most of the other players. (Jeff and Martin also have a brother who is a New Albany police officer.)

What's the point of this? No one knew beforehand how many players would be playing that evening. If there were ten that showed then they would have the minimum number needed to play five on five without anyone on the sidelines. If they had eight, they would play four on four. If twelve, two would be sitting out and the other ten would be playing.

So if no one knew the numbers, how could anyone effectively plan on "escaping" the games without being unnoticed, particularly if there were only ten that showed that evening? If David Camm had planned on either meeting Charles Boney or killing his family that evening, then he was dependent upon the actions of others whom he didn't know and/or whose intentions even they didn't know.

Indeed, only ten did show until Sam Lockhart walked in after the first game of five on five had already started.

What about the length of the games? How long is a pickup game? All such answers begin with, "It depends…" It depends upon a lot of factors such as the amount of points needed to win a game and the difference in the number of points a team needs in order to win; whether one team is hot and the other is not; whether one or both teams, or neither, is playing good defense; whether they play full court or not. And so on and so on.

Again, what's the point of this? No one could conceivably know how long a game would last and therefore wouldn't know, even if there was a remote possibility to sneak out without being missed, how long one could be gone prior to the game terminating.

Additionally, how many pickup games result in a player twisting an ankle or getting an elbow in the nose and the player having to sit? Can you even depend upon being able to sit out a game without subbing for an injured or tired player?

How many spectators will show up and watch the games? At the Life Center that evening, Tom Jolly, a former basketball player himself, stopped by in order to just take in the game. In his early 60's, Tom wasn't going to play but was merely an interested spectator, particularly in view of the fact that he was an early proponent of building the Life Center and making it into a church outreach for others.

Tom did show up that evening and soon after arriving Dave sat out his only game that evening with his uncle Sam subbing in for him. Tom was sitting on the south end of the gym, behind and to the right of the south basketball goal. Tom and Dave sat speaking with one another as the other ten played. The players, as they ran and played at that end of the gym, saw Tom and Dave talking.

As the end of the game approached, Dave began to stretch and jog around, getting loose in order to play again.

Tom Jolly's initial interview by the police didn't focus on the fact that he and Dave sat on the baseline speaking with one another while Dave sat out his one game. After all, according to the original probable cause affidavit, that wasn't important because the murders occurred after Dave got home between 9:15 and 9:30PM. Only after it became apparent that the murders occurred during the basketball games did the basketball players and Tom Jolly become liars.

It is a given in law enforcement that witnesses should be separated and be interviewed outside the presence of other witnesses in order to secure their best independent recollection of an event and to not be tainted with the recollections of others. It is also a given that if the recollections of two witnesses are in lockstep with one another on every point that there is possibly an attempt by those witnesses to make sure that their stories jibe with one another.

What were the recollections of the basketball players and were they consistent with one another? The answer is that all had somewhat different recollections about the length of the games, the scores, who they guarded during what game, and the time of the beginning or end of each game. That should be expected. No one keeps a constant eye on the clock on the wall.

What were their consistencies? All of the players were consistent with the following:

1. All previous players agreed that they normally played from 7:00-9:00PM.
2. No one knew beforehand the number of players that would show that evening.
3. Dave was present when the gym was opened around 7:00PM (the alarm records reflected the alarm was disengaged at 6:59PM).
4. They shot around for a few minutes until the tenth player arrived.
5. They began playing five on five full court basketball fames around 7:10-7:15PM.
6. Sam Lockhart arrived after the ten began playing and was the 11th player to arrive.
7. During the five on five games Dave was the first one to sit out a game and Sam replaced him.
8. During the time that Dave sat out his one game he was repeatedly seen sitting behind the south baseline speaking with Tom Jolly.
9. Scott Schrank sat out the next game and Dave replaced him; Scott left the gym during that last five on five game.
10. Two additional players, Sam and Mark, left the gym after the last five on five game and shortly before 9:00PM.
11. The remaining eight players played four on four games until they decided to quit.
12. The remaining eight players all left the gym at the same time with Jeff Lockhart alarming and locking the gym; alarm records reflect the time was 9:22PM.
13. Dave Camm was one of the final eight players.
14. Dave Camm was at the church gym from 6:59PM until he left at 9:22PM.
15. No one saw any blood on Dave's T-Shirt or shoes.
16. Dave's demeanor during the entire time he was there didn't change; he was upbeat and having fun with the rest of the players.

According to the interviews of the remaining seven players, after the gym was locked, Dave walked to his white pickup truck, got inside, and then drove out of the church parking lot. Philip Lockhart and Jeff Lockhart, in their respective vehicles, drove out of the lot with him. Jeff and Dave drove north on Oakes Road until they separated at Ott Road, with Jeff continuing north and Dave driving west, towards Alonzo Smith Road.

During his interview with Dave on October 1, 2000 Mickey Neal told Dave that the other basketball players said that he was wearing a sweatshirt while playing that evening. Dave told him he wasn't. Neal's response was that the basketball players wouldn't lie. Neal had lied to Dave and later admitted that he did.

The basketball players wouldn't lie according to Neal. However, the basketball players were liars only after the prosecutor's theory changed. Their second and third theories were that Dave killed Kim and the kids during the time the games were played and not between 9:15 and 9:30PM. They tossed out their theory about when the murders occurred in the first probable cause affidavit. Only then, when they were proven wrong, did the basketball players become liars when they said that Dave didn't leave the gym.

The fact of the matter is that the basketball players and Tom Jolly have always been consistent. It is the changing theories of the prosecution that have changed and not the stories of Scott, Mark, Tony, Eric, Sam, Tom, Philip, Jeff, Martin, Jeff, and Jeremy. They have never had a reason to lie and have been honest and forthright.